The United Nations World Food Program yesterday issued an appeal for $4.9 billion in additional funds over the next six months to be able to feed the tens of millions of people who, because of the pandemic, now need food assistance to survive.
The figures are stark: Last year, WFP food assistance helped keep a record 97 million people alive; it is currently “ramping up” its program to feed 138 million people. But based on real-time monitoring and assessment of needs as the pandemic spreads, the WFP now estimates the number of people needing its assistance could increase by another 132 million before the end of 2020, to total 270 million souls. That is an 82% increase over the food aid required before the pandemic, the WFP noted.
“The frontline in the battle against the coronavirus is shifting from the rich world to the poor world,” WFP Executive Director David Beasley warned yesterday. “Until the day we have a medical vaccine, food is the best vaccine against chaos. Without it, we could see increased social unrest and protests, a rise in migration, deepening conflict and widespread under-nutrition among populations that were previously immune from hunger.”
